After days of excessive eating and drinking at the end of December, many people try to adopt healthy habits in January.
From vegan to paleo, there are plenty of trendy diets to choose from. Among all the contradicting information on the health benefits of various foods, one term has been used by marketers to promote products that are seen as having an exceptionally high density of nutrients: "superfood."
As the Germans would say, it's simply Quatsch to believe that a specific food could save anyone from incurable diseases. The European Food Information Council has also stressed that people shouldn't be fooled by a trendy marketing label and ensure that their diet is based on a diversity of products.
Nevertheless, the "superfood" label has had an impact on consumer trends. Following the buzz, Germany has become the largest importer of chia seeds in Europe, according to a 2018 report by Mordor Intelligence. The seeds, native to Central America, started becoming popular in Europe over the past decade.
What some Germans perhaps don't realize, however, is that they've always had access to incredibly nutritious foods in their own country, such as the traditional winter vegetable, kale, and the country's most popular fruit, the apple.
Read more: The Germans' insatiable love affair with potatoes
Germans ate on average 21 kilos of apples per person in 2017-2018
Following a seasonal and regional food diet is not only healthy. It also supports the local economy and is more environmentally-friendly since the products travel a shorter distance. That also generally means fresher products.
The gallery above provides a few other ideas of "superfoods" that grow in Germany — including a wild plant that people usually hate because it invades fields and stings…
You'll find more from Meet the Germans on YouTube or at dw.com/MeettheGermans.
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German vegetables that are uncommon elsewhere
Kohlrabi
This member of the cabbage family - the name means "cabbage turnip" - is a common vegetable throughout Germany. It is mild, crisp and juicy when eaten raw, and soft and creamy when steamed and served puréed or in a sauce, soup or casserole. It's often called kohlrabi in English, too.
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German vegetables that are uncommon elsewhere
Savoy cabbage
It is emerald green and has crisp crinkly leaves, lots of vitamin C and a distinct taste. Savoy cabbage is great in soups and stews, or steamed as a side dish. What Germans call "Wirsing" is a staple at German farmers' markets and in supermarket produce aisles all year round.
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German vegetables that are uncommon elsewhere
Turnip greens
Turnip greens - "Rübstiel" in German (literally, beet stems) - are a regional specialty and are particularly common in Germany's western Rhineland area and in the Netherlands. Their tender stems are chopped, steamed and mixed with potatoes or added to stews. "Rübstiel" aficionados can look forward two harvests a year - in spring and fall.
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German vegetables that are uncommon elsewhere
Wild garlic
This member of the Allium family - known as ramsons, wild garlic, wood garlic, bear leek, or bear's garlic - is kin to onions, chives and garlic. It grows in the forest and makes an excellent pesto. It smells like garlic, and tastes like garlic. Known in German as "Bärlauch," it is very popular in Germany and can be found in anything from soups and salads to dips, quiches and cheese.
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German vegetables that are uncommon elsewhere
Black salsify
Black salsify is a long, slender white taproot covered with a dark skin. "Schwarzwurzel" (black root) in German, it is also known as the "poor man's asparagus" or "winter asparagus" and is a typical winter vegetable. It is served when the Germans' beloved white asparagus is not yet in season, steamed, with boiled potatoes and butter.
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German vegetables that are uncommon elsewhere
White asparagus
The white vegetable in the photo above is actually asparagus. The green variety is more popular in other countries, but Germans love their white asparagus and anxiously await its arrival in spring, keeping a lookout in late April for the first stalks of their "white gold" to appear in stores and roadside stands.
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German vegetables that are uncommon elsewhere
Parsley root
Parsely root, which is easily confused with the slightly larger parsnips, is the third vegetable from the left, next to the black salsify. It is a winter vegetable that has been used in Europe for centuries, in soups, stews, and mixed veggie dishes. The smaller the root, the more tender it is, experts say - and it's a great source of vitamin C, too.
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German vegetables that are uncommon elsewhere
White radish
If you ever come to Bavaria and order a typical "Brotzeit" (bread time) snack to go with your beer, you'll find a crispy white garnish, sometimes draped in elaborate twists and curls on your plate. They're called "Radi," and are a spicy white radish that is full of vitamin C and always eaten raw. The word derives from the Latin for root, "radix." Its cousin, the radish, is "Radieschen" in German.
Author: Dagmar Breitenbach
